


Screw Your Courage to the Sticking Place

by IrisPatton



Category: Original Work
Genre: Childhood Friends, Eiko has the Midas Touch, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Everyone but Kanaye is a Villain in this, Fudo Can Control Fire, Gangs, Gen, Genki Could Control Metal, Heroes, Heroes and Villains, Hiroki Aiuchi is an Illusionist, Hurt/Comfort, Illusions, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Kanaye Aikawa has Telekinetic Powers, Metal Control, Midas Touch, NO ITS NOT BETWEEN KANAYE AND HIROKI, Serious Injuries, Telekinesis, Villains, fire control, gang leaders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-11
Updated: 2019-08-11
Packaged: 2020-08-19 07:47:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20206213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IrisPatton/pseuds/IrisPatton
Summary: Hiroki Aiuchi and Kanaye Aikawa have always cared for each other.Even when they were on the opposite sides...Inspired by that one Tumblr post:“The hero shows up at the villain’s doorstep one night. They’re shivering, bleeding, scared. There’s also a slightly dazed look in their eyes- they were drugged. They look like they were assaulted. Looking up at the villain, swaying slightly as they’re close to passing out, they mumble ‘…didn’t know where else to go…’ then collapse into the villain’s arms.”





	Screw Your Courage to the Sticking Place

**Author's Note:**

> THIS IS FOR MY FRIEND AMNA.  
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LOVE!! I HOPE YOU LIKE IT!!
> 
> .
> 
> There are some things about the AU in the End-notes so make sure to read those. This isn't edited or proofread yet. So, please excuse any errors!
> 
> The tittle is inspired by a dialogue in one of Shakespeare's works.
> 
> Enjoy and Thank you for reading!
> 
> P. S. I normally try not to make my characters swear but keep in mind that Hiroki is a villain and Kanaye is in a really bad mental space so cursing seems like the least of their worries. And they've met after years so the awkwardness is causing a lot of stuttering.

Hiroki Aiuchi’s day was going good.

And considering he was a villain that was a miracle in and out of itself.

That was until the heroes had shown up at the crime scene to stop them.

It was a close call; many of his men had been injured, a few caught and one shot in the crossfire –Hiroki always knew Genki was a sacrificing idiot and would get himself killed someday because of loyalty. But they had gotten away to their secret hideout with the stolen jewels from the jewelry exhibit from the museum downtown.

It had been a tiring day and they had all gone to their own places after distributing the prize and treating their wounds –because Hiroki may be a gang leader with the ability to create illusions but he was no backstabber to his own people.

So, he was beyond pissed when he was woken up from his sweet _deserving_ sleep in the middle of the night –probably– by a loud banging at his door and even when he was used to Eiko and Fudo to crash at his place –no one but them knew about– at odd hours of the night, they usually would come in through the window quietly without making this much ruckus.

Hiroki wondered if they had gotten shitfaced drunk again and maybe he should go back to sleep and leave them out for the night to teach them not to come here in a compromising condition. He didn’t want a repeat of last time when those fuckers from the gang a few districts away tried to expand their territory and decided he was an easy target. Those fuckers didn’t know what had hit them.

Hiroki may be an illusion ability wielder but he knew how to take care of his enemies with that ability itself. Had been doing that for years.

He was almost asleep again when the banging became even more desperate –jolting him up and this time it didn’t stop.

He got out of bed grumbling a little and snatched his gun from his bedside table –he had used his power almost to the limits getting away from the heroes today and he was tired and not in the mood to collapse because of overestimating himself. He walked to the door with precision and sharp movements because the banging was really putting him on edge.

“Coming, I’m coming. I swear to god, Eiko or Fudo, if any of you show up at my door drunk again, I’m goi–”

He pulled the door open mid speech and aimed the gun at the person in front of him.

And oh shit.

_Shit_.

_He_ wasn’t supposed to be here.

He wasn’t even supposed to _know_ where Hiroki lived.

But here he was, Kanaye Aikawa, standing at Hiroki’s doorstep looking like shit.

Hiroki’s first instinct was to shoot honestly. Even though it never really mattered between them that Kanaye was a hero and Hiroki a villain. But they hadn’t been on the best of terms after that incident a couple of years ago and Hiroki admitted to himself it was mainly his own fault.

But Hiroki put his gun down on the table beside the door when he really saw the condition the hero was in. He was breathing funny and his clothes were torn up. He was shivering slightly and his eyes were wild and glazed over and Hiroki immediately recognized it as what it was –drugs.

Kanaye had been _drugged_ because he knew the other enough –and that wouldn’t ever change between them no matter how many years they go without seeing each other, Kanaye was the one who knew Hiroki best, too– to know this that he didn’t do drugs.

“…Kanaye?”

“Hi-Hiro, sorry, I-I didn’t- an’whe’e else t’ go”

Kanaye’s words were choked and slurred badly and before he knew it he passed out and collapsed into Hiroki’s arms.

Hiroki stumbled back a bit and stared at him for a while, eyes wide and mouth parted in shock.

“Shit. _Shit_”

He dragged Kanaye back into his house and closed the door by his foot, he didn’t know how he managed to lock the door though but he did and then firmed his grasp on the telekinetic ability wielder. And Hiroki realized with a start that Kanaye was light as he dragged him back to the couch.

“What did you got yourself into this time you damn idiot”

And with that Hiroki started up on the task, his mind on overdrive because even when he was a villain there was one person he cared about and only one and that idiot had gotten himself into something he couldn’t deal with and on the brink of death –possibly.

He ran to his bathroom to grab the first aid kit and he picked his phone up on the fly, as well. He should probably text Eiko and Fudo to not come to his house for the next few days –a quick text and he went to the immediate task at hand; Kanaye.

He went back to the living room and looked Kanaye thoroughly –he was paler than Hiroki had ever seen him, there were cuts and lacerations all over his face and hands and when Hiroki took off his shirt he found bruises on his torso as well.

His keen eye told him it wasn’t _just_ broken ribs and he swallowed when he saw a burn mark on his hipbone as well. He shook his head, it wasn’t the time for feeling pity, he needed to act now and treat Kanaye’s wounds before they became infected.

Time seemed to blur after that and when he was done he was even more exhausted than before. Kanaye was _out cold_ –hadn’t even stirred _once_ all this time, not even when Hiroki was setting his left wrist and shoulder bone right again.

Hiroki collapsed on the floor, leaning his back against the couch and sighed. His hands were all covered in blood –_Kanaye’s blood_– and his whole body throbbed with that bone deep exhaustion that always seem to set in when he thought about Kanaye. He hung his head and closed his eyes for a moment.

*

*

*

Hiroki woke up to noise. Traffic noise and bright afternoon light coming through the living room windows and he groaned and blinked sleep away from his eyes. He yawned and brought his hands to rub his face when he felt them sticky and opened his eyes to clearly see why.

He froze for a moment and tried to think what was going on and why he was in his living room when the night before came to him and he realized he must have fallen asleep after he had treated Kanaye’s wounds. His eyes widened and he whipped around in a rush to see Kanaye’s sleeping form there.

Oh.

Kanaye had come to him for help.

Kanaye had come to him for help _after_ _what Hiroki had done to him so many years ago_.

Kanaye still _trusted_ him.

Hiroki swallowed back and _looked_ at Kanaye.

He had changed. He had changed _a_ _lot_, his face was still pale but had regained a bit color but his usually tanned skin still wasn’t- Hiroki averted his eyes. He probably shouldn’t stare at the guy like a creep while he was sleeping and he _definitely_ shouldn’t introspect about his skin tone.

He sighed and stood up. He should probably shower and change into fresh clothes since he had crashed in his bed without changing and showering last night. He groaned in exasperation at himself, he felt so gross and sticky. He should probably wake Kanaye up and check his wounds for any tell tale signs of infections and redress them and he should probably make breakfast as well because he was hungry and Kanaye would need something to eat as well.

He stopped and realized there was light mist around his hands and blinked then decided that he really did need a shower.

A really _long_ relaxing shower.

*

*

*

Hiroki got out of the shower feeling fresh and awake and slightly less exhausted than before. He walked into his room in a pair of sweatpants and picked a shirt from his bed and started wearing it when he heard the low _ting_ _ting_ coming from the living room. His phone was probably ringing.

He walked into the living room to see Kanaye trying to sit up on the couch and he swore colorfully before rushing to his side and pushing him back on the couch.

“Hey- Hey, it’s okay, Kanaye. Calm down, it’s me, Hiroki.”

“Hiro-ki, what-what’s- how did I get here?”

“Wait here; let me get a glass of water.”

His phone rang again and Hiroki picked it up on his way to the kitchen. He looked back at Kanaye and answered his phone –it was Eiko.

“Eiko, what’s up?” Hiroki spoke first.

“Hey man, where have you been? I’ve been trying to reach you since morning. You went silent after texting me not to come to your place, what’s up with that? Fudo said, he got the same text.”

He took a bottle out of the fridge and picked up a glass from the counter, pouring the water into it before going back into the living room.

“Yeah, about that, don’t try to contact me for the next couple of days, Eiko. I’m kinda- busy with something, won’t be available. I want you and Fudo to take care of things while I’m gone, yeah?”

He looked at Kanaye trying to sit up again; he put the glass on the coffee table and hurriedly wrapped things up with Eiko on the phone before helping Kanaye sit up and lean against the arm of the couch.

“Here.”

Hiroki put the glass back after Kanaye was done. And helped him settle more comfortably; grabbing pillows from the sofa behind him and propping them behind Kanaye.

“Uhhh- how are you feeling? I was – I was gonna make breakfast, you’re probably hungry, too, yeah?”

They were both silent for some time but the spell was broken by Kanaye.

“Shit”

He was bending over himself –Kanaye was trying to make himself as _small_ as possible and Hiroki thought it must have been a painful position with broken ribs and his other injuries.

But then _Kanaye_ _was_ _crying_.

And Hiroki could only watch.

He could only sit there and watch as Kanaye broke down into muffled sobs and Hiroki couldn’t believe this was the same Kanaye. The same Kanaye who fought with a sense of justice so strong that it didn’t matter to him how strong the opponent was or what the consequences would be. The same Kanaye who smiled even when the situation was dire. The same Kanaye who had smiled at him sadly all those years ago when he should have been screaming in anger because Hiroki had broken his trust.

“Oh god. Oh god- no. No, no, no. Please, No–”

And before Hiroki knew, his body moved on his own and he was gathering Kanaye in his arms, careful of his hand and shoulder. And he stilled for a moment when instead of pushing away, Kanaye broke down even more in his arms.

Hiroki didn’t speak. Because he knew anything he would say right now wouldn’t reach Kanaye at all –he was always like that ever since they were kids, loosing himself in his thoughts and hysteria and Hiroki looked at Kanaye and realized that that hadn’t changed in all the time they had been away from each other.

So, instead of offering useless consolation words about something he didn’t even knew, he tightened his arms around Kanaye and shifted until they were in a more comfortable position.

Kanaye kept crying, though, and Hiroki thought his heart would combust with how broken he sounded. Because Kanaye –his _once best friend_ shouldn’t be crying like this.

*

*

*

The crying dulled after sometime but they stayed that way. Hiroki knew that Kanaye would talk when he was ready, there was no use trying to be pushy when he just had a breakdown.

“You wanna talk now?”

Curiosity _did_ kill the cat, after all.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know why I came here, I just- thank you for taking care of me. I’ll get out of your hair as soon as possible. I’m fine now you don’t- you can let go.”

Hiroki pulled back completely and looked at Kanaye tiredly.

“Bullshit. I call bullshit. ‘_I’m fine_’? I think you might wanna look that phrase up in the dictionary again.”

“Look, I’m fine, okay. I’ll leave. You’ve done enough and I appreciate it. I shouldn’t have come here; I don’t know why I did. It was a mistake.”

Kanaye grunted as he tried to push himself up only to fall back again on the couch.

“_‘Mistake’_? Cut that shit out, Aikawa! I saw the bruises and the burn mark and everything. You’re ribs are literally broken, you can barely _sit_ on your own let alone _walk_ and you call that _fine_? You just broke down crying barely an hour ago after waking up from a god knows what drug induced sleep. Do you want me to remind you any of your other injuries?”

“I know, okay! I know! I know what happened. I know what they did to me, you think I’d forget the burn mark and the beatings and everything they did? They tried to fucking brand me, they- they- I couldn’t–”

And just as abruptly Kanaye had started shouting, his voice dropped to a whisper and he stuttered before completely dissolving into loud sobs again.

“Kanaye- what- what are you talking about?”

And yes, Hiroki was a villain and a thief and he did bad stuff to people but he never stooped to the level of hurting people just because he _could_ even if it was tempting and an easy way out. Hiroki had always kept torture and murder as a _last resort_ when there wasn’t any other way out.

So, seeing Kanaye –<strike>his maybe friend</strike>, he wasn’t sure after all this time- implying what Hiroki _thought_ he was, made his gut churn and bile rose in his throat.

“Kanaye, please tell me- please tell me they didn’t–”

And Kanaye cried harder.

And Hiroki’s heart shattered into a million pieces.

This wasn’t _fair_.

_This wasn’t fair._

Kanaye had never done anything _but_ help people. He was a goddamn _hero_, he didn’t deserve this. _ Shit_. _He didn’t deserve this_. Those bastards would pay with their lives. Hiroki was a villain and he tried to steer clear of murder and unnecessary violence but there was a limit and when his few precious cared for people were threatened and hurt, well, he was a villain at the end of the day.

Hiroki was brought out of his thoughts when Kanaye spoke again.

“I’m sorry- I’m sorry I couldn’t go to anyone else- I’m- I’m supposed to be a hero but now? Damn it all– I’ve always been too weak for the job anyways”

Kanaye’s voice was wrecked and sitting there; he looked broken in more ways than just physically.

“Hey, hey no- it’s –you know you can always come to me, Kanaye, we- we used to be best friends and- and I know that what I did was wrong but I still care about you. And this wasn’t your fault. None of this is your fault. I’m so sorry you had to go through this, Kanaye, I don’t- I don’t know what to say, I’m sorry.”

Kanaye only shook his head.

“It wasn’t- It isn’t your fault, you don’t have to apologize. I just- I never imagined, being a hero I always thought I could fight any villain out there but- never this.”

“Do you wanna –um I don’t know, maybe talk about it all? With me?”

And yes they weren’t on good terms but lines of heroes and villains have always blurred with them when it came to each other. They could fight a death battle, betray each other, but in the end, if the other needed someone in their corner –Hiroki or Kanaye, both, will be the first one. It had always been that way with them, ever since they were children.

Kanaye seemed to hesitate a bit at the offer, wiped his face clean of tears –a few escaped anyways and then he stared at Hiroki for a few moments in silence as if contemplating if he could trust him or not and then looked away nodding his head a bit.

“Okay. Okay how about I make us something to eat and I check your wounds and then we can talk properly. Because I think, you really need to eat something to take the meds otherwise I’m afraid for a possibility of an infection.”

There was a moment of silence and then Kanaye spoke in a quiet voice.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’d really like that.”

Hiroki stood up and sighed and made his way to the kitchen with only a single glance thrown over his shoulder.

This was going to be a long day. But he’d be damned if he left Kanaye to deal with it all alone. I didn’t matter if he was a villain helping a hero. Because Kanaye would always come first.

He started on the breakfast and thought about how to help his friend. Because even if Kanaye was sorting his help through this all, Hiroki had still broken his trust, he still had to apologize to Kanaye and they still needed to talk and if he thought about it hard, there was still some resentment towards Kanaye somewhere in Hiroki’s heart.

He sighed yet once again.

He didn’t have a single clue as to where to start.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay people, there are a few things you need to know about this AU:
> 
> -Don't ask me why they are all Japanese, I don't know why they are Japanese.  
-The Place-Setting is intentionally kept vague, you can decide whether it's placed in Japan or in America.  
-Hiroki Auichi's name literally mean "The one with abundant joy, strength and love Inside".  
-Kanaye Aikawa's name translates to "Zealous one who sympathizes with others".  
-I love giving my characters contradicting names.  
-Genki means "Lively one", Fudo means "god of fire and wisdom" and Eiko means "Prosperity".  
-Kanaye and Hiroki are childhood friends and "the incident" mentioned numerous times is also kept vague intentionally (and no not because I'm lazy I do plan to write it in the future maybe). So, you can think of whatever you want until I write something canon.  
-Abilities and being a hero and villain is common in the society.  
-Hiroki was brought up by his grandparents and when they died he somehow ended up on the streets instead of a foster home or with a relative.  
-Kanaye comes from a traditional family of heroes. But he's hella introverted.  
-Eiko has a really sad backstory that I may or may not write in the future (I'm not making any promises) and if I'm feeling immensely motivational I'll expend on this as well.  
-Since, Hiroki was brought up by his grandparents he does have a conscience but he somehow ended up being a villain.  
-Sometimes, Hiroki and Kanaye or any ability wielder looses their control over their powers if they get too emotional. The same happens to Hiroki in his bedroom because he's concerned about Kanaye.
> 
> .
> 
> That's all. Please leave a review about anything you don't understand or wanna ask or whether you like it or not!!
> 
> Thank You  
~ Love, Iris.


End file.
